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BEST IELTS Writing Task 2, 5th August
IELTS WRITING TASK 2
IELTS WRITING TASK 2
Many people today, especially in the developed world, are choosing to have fewer children, or none at all. Why is this happening, and do you think it is a good trend? Give reasons for your answer, and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
SAMPLE ANSWER
I myself have only one child, while my ageing brothers remain unmarried and childless, as do my wife’s. Such casual observation reveals a clear (and arguably worrying) demographic trend: declining birth rates, now characterising developed nations. After giving one reason for this phenomenon, I will argue, perhaps surprisingly, that it is good.
One cause is certainly economic, with the trend being correlated to the increasing cost of living, and escalating property values. This makes it virtually impossible to raise many children while maintaining the standard of living which most in the developed world now expect. Facing such financial hurdles, many couples prefer to concentrate resources, effort, and hope, on fewer offspring, offering possibilities of not only ‘making ends meet’, but also becoming self-funded retirees before decrepitude and senility render them unable to enjoy this time.
I would say this is an acceptable trend since, ultimately, the children involved will be (one would expect) better loved and provided for, which is the most important factor. Such care ensures psychologically stability, as well as adequate education, from which society only benefits. I have witnessed first-hand in the Philippines what rampant and ill-considered procreation causes, particularly in an economically-depressed and resource-deficient country: myriad slum- dwellers and multitudinous street urchins, all mired in a cycle of poverty. Such circumstances serve no purposes at all.
Another reason for having fewer children is the reprieve it offers parents from the unremitting toil of rearing them. Caring for babies is onerous and exhausting, both mentally and physically, as caregivers are effectively on-call to demanding, indeed, tyrannical, ‘bosses’. In competitive societies, this workload only increases as children mature for example, in the home schooling to which my own son is chained”, with slavish assistance required from the mother. Having fewer children confines these burdens, at least, to manageable limits, and few would begrudge this.
Although one can easily be seduced by the idyllic image of large happy families, the harsh reality must necessarily temper such illusions, and reasonably so. In short, the trend towards having smaller families is only natural. By ignoring such instincts, couples may find far less fulfilment in the longer term. Concluding then, improving the lives of all involved, declining birth-rates must be deemed acceptable. Arguing otherwise will only unnecessarily raise the ire of parents. Yet the economic consequences suggest governments should start making provisions. The future will probably only see this trend grow stronger.
IELTS Writing Task 2
IELTS Writing Task 2